Journey Through Time
by belle-fille1
Summary: Yami goes to Egypt leaving Tea behind. But then a mysterious spirit appears out of nowhere with a hatred toward the pharoah and targets Tea by controlling her friends mind, what will happen to Tea? R&R! (ppl controlled will be Ryou&Malik&both their yamis)
1. Eyes on Me

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-gi-oh!

Umm…this is, as of right now,…mostly sad, I was listening to a variety of love ballads and decided to write this…the music I listened to were : All Cried Out by Allure and 112, Have You Ever by Brandy, Secret Garden by Bruce Springsteen, Hands by Jewel, Viva Forever by Spice Girls, Unbreak My Heart by Toni Braxton, Every Step You Take by Puff Daddy, Big Big World by Emilia, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon theme song by Coco Lee, songs from Nicolas Tse, of course, my favorite Asian International singer, Jay Chow, and First Love by Utada Hikaru.

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The haunting melody floated past her hunched form as she slowly stared at her now-cold coffee. Tea sat huddled with a fleece blanket wrapped around her, the vibrant stripes of the cloth mocking her memories of him. Memories which she was desperately trying to suppress to the deepest recesses of her mind.

"No," she breathed, her hand tightly clenching the white porcelain cup with the faded sunflowers painted near the base. In the distant background, the radio on top of the white shelf continued it's aching song, the flickering flames of the fire just below the ledge making dark shadows dance upon her figure.

Seated upon her leather armchair, Tea faced the latticed window, the rose curtains drawn aside so that the glittering expanse of snow could be seen. The corners of the window panes were fogging up, crystals of snow forming at the edges. 

Tea felt so cold inside although physically her skin was warm under the blanket and from the heat coming from the fire burning gently in the fireplace. She shut her cerulean eyes tightly, her dark eyelashes accentuating her almond eyes.

"No," she whispered fiercely to herself, "I will not cry!" Too late. A droplet of water trickled from the edges of her closed eyes leaving a trail of moisture on her pale cheeks. "Damn it," she hissed, opening her eyes to reveal glittering tears.

A hand moved jerkily to wipe her eyes as the other set the cup on the stained coffee table beside her. 

She stood up, letting the blanket fall from her, and crossed the room to the window. Gazing outside, it was like a Winter Wonderland. The snow blanketed the earth, the feathery flakes spiraled downwards to lightly land on tree branches, parked cars, and everything that it could reach. 

"You're a big girl now, Tea," she said softly, her breath slightly fogging the window panes., as one hand caressed the window.

It had been done gently, she was grateful at least for that. Of course, the worst part was that she couldn't find fault in the break-up, it would've been better if she could blame the end of the relationship on Yami. But that wasn't possible, his reasons, well, let's just say that no one could find any error on his part.

She should have known it was coming, but she had selfishly clung on because she was afraid to be alone again. Cradled in his gentle arms, she felt safe and protected from her fears. With him, her fears for her friends, her fear of failing to enter into Julliard, the prestigious ballet school, all these insecurities were banished just by his touch.

Tea bowed her head, as she trailed her fingers on the sill. But at least he was gentle, she thought again to herself.

Unable to stop herself, she thought again about what happened a few hours before.

It had been just after school and she was watching Joey and Tristan have another fight over who had gotten the last ham sandwich at the cafeteria. 

"No, I touched it first, you ignoramus," howled Joey, pounding his fists on Tristan's back.

"Yeah, but you cheated in order to get it!" Tristan yelled in response, pinning the struggling Joey down. "You tripped me as we were racing toward it!"

"It doesn't matter," snorted Joey as he wriggled out of Tristan's furious grip and punched him in the stomach. "Ha!" he said triumphantly to the downed Tristan. "Take that! It's your fault that you fell for it, it's survival of the fittest when it comes to those ham sandwiches!"

Tea giggled at their antics as Tristan grabbed Joey into a headlock and proceeded to ram his head into the fence. 

"Take that! And that!" Tristan grunted. "Now who's laughin,' huh?"

A chuckle of laughter was heard.

Tea smiled, "Hello Yugi!" she said cheerfully. "I suppose everyone else is there with you?" It was more of a statement than a question. 

"You guessed it," Yugi Moto replied back, his short form moving to sit next to Tea. Tea craned her head around as she was greeted by Mai, Ryou, and Yami. The others, Malik, Marik, and Bakura, stood farther apart from the group, cold expressions on their face. They hung in the group but spoke little, and if they did, it was usually a disparaging comment here and there.

An arm draped itself over Tea's shoulder as she leaned into Yami's chest. 

"Hey," she said as she buried her nose into his thick blue jacket. Mmm, he smelled of the forest. 

As the gang watched in comfortable silence as Joey and Tristan continued to duke it out, Yami leaned down to whisper in Tea's ear.

"Tea…" he said uncertainly. "Can I talk to you in private?" 

Tea glanced up at him, a questioning look on her face. "Sure, of course," she said as she scrambled to her feet, the boots skidding slightly in the snow. 

"Hey guys, I'm gonna leave with Yami now," she announced.

Everyone murmured their good-bye's to them, eyes flicking briefly at the pair, they were too engrossed with the fight. Joey now had the upper hand, he had Tristan's arm bent behind him as he was furiously pounding poor Tristan's face into the snow. 

"Had enough?" panted Joey, his face red.

"Nevuh!" cried Tristan, his mouth full of snow.

Shaking her head, Tea lead Yami to the park, the bare trees covered in lumps of snow. As they reached a bench, Tea sat down, and after a moment of hesitation, Yami did as well. 

"So," Tea said, crossing her legs, "What did you want to tell me?"

Yami looked away at the trees for a long moment, his profile was dark and stern. The epitome of a courtly prince. Then he turned back to Tea. 

Taking Tea's gloved hands with his, he gently looked into her eyes, violet eyes serious. 

"You know that it's been a few months since we were together," he began, his voice thick with suppressed emotions. "Being with you, made me feel as if I was a regular human, not a five thousand year old pharaoh, who's past died a few millennia ago. You've…you've made me feel alive, and for awhile…you drove out my doubt over whether Shadi had made a right decision in giving me a body. And for awhile, I could escape all these doubts being with you. But it's come to a point where I can't anymore. My memories of my previous life still haunts me, I can remember my family, my old friends…everything still so clearly."

"By the holy feathers of Ra," he swore, looking away. "This is so hard for me. I feel like I am using you Tea, to forget about my pharaoh life. And that's where I had to make the decision to…end things. I can't keep on escaping my past and ignoring it, I just keep on having this feeling like something is missing from my life."

Tea looked down at her tightly laced hands. "Yami," she said, blinking away tears, "But you're past is dead though."

"Yes, it's dead," Yami said in a muted voice, "But I'm not."

He wearily put his hands over his face, "I bought a ticket to Egypt to look for Shadi. I believe he can help me."

"I understand," Tea said quietly. 

Yami gave a surprised look at Tea. 

"What?" Tea said with a trembling smile, "Didn't think I knew that you were still brooding whether it was fair that you were given a body when your family and your entire past were dead? Yami," she leaned forward, eyes brimming with tears, "I understand…I took this risk when we first got together. And," she gave a small laugh, her voice catching, "You say you used me…yet I believe that I used you. You were my shield against my worries over Yugi and Joey, whether they'd be alright in their duels, my own doubts over my dancing, my safe haven against all the other people who wanted to see my friends fail in the dueling tournaments." 

She broke off, biting her lip. Then she squeezed Yami's shoulder tightly. 

"Go to Egypt and get the answers to all of your questions," she said, looking deep into his eyes, and stood up, brushing off the snow from her jacket.

Yami stood up as well, and grasped her hand. 

"Tea, but this doesn't mean that I don't want to be with you…it's just that it could take years to find out what I'm missing in my new life, that I don't want you to be left unhappy, waiting for me. But if I do come back soon…would you wait for me?"

Tea smiled sadly, "You know my answer Yami. Yes." As she turned to leave, Yami caught her sleeve.

"I'll walk you home."

Tea gently disengaged his hand, "Yami, your first step is to let go of me. If you really want to find your answers, you'll have to let go of your present life in order to get back to your past life."

Yami slowly drew back his arm, she was right. 

"Don't worry, I'll wait for you," she promised and walked away. 

Don't look back, Tea chanted in her mind. She knew that if she did, she would probably fling herself back into his arms and hysterically ask him to stay. 

Yami watched Tea slowly trudge away. He suddenly felt even more lost with the disappearance of Tea by his side. 

He gripped the silver chain hanging from his neck, it was a gift from Tea. 

"I won't forget you, no matter how my journey ends," he whispered.

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Okay, slightly…hehe…sappy…but hey, a sappy scene every once in awhile is okay! Hmm…I think this will be a one-shot fic, just because I already have too many stories out there. But if you guy's disagree otherwise…tell me. But tell me the truth and not just because you want another chapter…oh however if you do..it's not gonna be guaranteed that Tea will stay with Yami…depends on how I feel..hehe, gonna for once, decide who she stays with. But that's **only** if you want to continue it. ReMeMbEr though! Tell me the truth, plz! 


	2. Subterfuge

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-gi-oh!

Okay this is my update! Thanks to my six reviewers who said that it had enough potential to continue! Now…I just have to see where my plotline is going…hmm…^^

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_They say that pain and anguish fades through the passing of time. How true that is. For right now I can vividly picture him…but for how long? Inevitably my heart will forget and that is what I am afraid of._

-Tea Gardener, Diary entry

"C'mon Tea," pleaded Mai, making a puppy-dog face, "It'll be fun! You need to get out more often."

"No, no," Tea protested, gently disengaging her hand from Mai's grip. "You go to the club, bring Serenity with you. I'll go another day."

Mai gave the brunette a speculative look. "Promise?" the blonde girl asked suspiciously. 

Tea smiled, "I always keep my promises," she said mockingly, wagging a finger at Mai's laughing form.

"Fine," Mai said with a warm smile as she turned and walked away. "But remember your promise!" she called out, her voice fading with her footsteps. Hooking a few strands of hair behind her ear, Tea tossed her head back, smiling as she started to walk home. Around her, students of Domino High School shouted to their friends. A couple of underclassmen on their bikes whistled to a group of girls who flirted back, flipping their hair or bending over to pick up something, giving the hooting boys an excellent view of their blouse.

Ah yes, everyone was so happy that it was Winter Break. There was a wild sense of abandon and joy throughout the school, finally the long awaited break! 

Hmm, no one's here to walk with me, Tea thought wryly.

The rest of the boys in the 'gang,' which was what Tea called her group of friends, had stayed after school for a project, something to do with physics. 

As her path lead her past the park, she slowed down and stopped. Her gaze shifted directly to a snow covered bench. She felt a wave of loneliness. She could almost see Yami's form beckoning to her, hearing his soothing voice, comforting her. 

It had been, what, three weeks? Three weeks since Yami had left on that plane heading toward Egypt. Her friends had done their best to keep her mind busy even though she ended up turning down their offers like she did today with Mai. 

"Get a grip on yourself, Tea," she warned herself out loud, "I refuse to let you become one of those moping women who can't do anything without their man." 

For a long moment, she stood still, staring at the empty bench. Then she quickly turned away, her footsteps rapid on the icy pavement. Perhaps she would join Mai today at that new dance club. Just because Yami was gone didn't mean that she could not have fun with her friends.

*****

The snow had finally stopped, a few scattering of flakes floated in the air. Tea hugged her winter coat to herself, shivering. 

Mai's blue Jetta rolled up as her bedecked friend waved from the driver's seat with Serenity seating beside her. 

"Tea! Glad you changed your mind!" grinned Mai, fully pleased at Tea's choice. Tea did a double-take when she saw Mai's outfit. 

"Mai, Serenity, did Joey see what you guys are wearing?" Underneath their winter coats, Mai was wearing a sheer red tank with black flares while Serenity wore a silk white gown that had a slit riding dangerously high. 

The two other girls gave a look at each other and burst out laughing. 

"Yes, and Joey had a fit, too bad that he couldn't catch us fast enough," said Mai, elbowing Serenity. "But hey, you're looking good as well," Joey's sister said admiringly.

"Oh this," Tea blushed, looking down at herself. Under her own heavy knee length coat, she wasn't wearing anything risqué, just an off the shoulder shirt in velvet blue, the collar barely showing her chest while a modest full length black lace skirt that tightened a bit on her hips, a slit cut to the knee. 

"C'mon, get in," motioned Mai, "It's a girl's night out…let's have some fun!" 

"Look at us," said Serenity, laughing, "We're wearing summer clothing in the dead of winter! Whew, turn up the heater!" 

Slinging their arms around Tea, the two other girls lightly chattered with each other, bolstering Tea's spirits up with their jokes and gossip. 

*****

Whew, thought Tea, I'm tired. She had danced with her friends for a full two hours until her feet could take no more and she had retired to a table while the girls continued dancing.

Just then a young man about twenty-five approached her, "Can I sit her for a breather?" he asked with a genial smile. 

Tea smiled back, "Sure." He certainly dresses differently than most people I've seen, Tea thought. He wore all black, a simple T-shirt whose sleeves were cut off, leaving frays at the edges, and sleek black pants. A gleaming gold ankh hung from a silver chain around his neck.

"Are you into Egypt?" Tea asked, pointing at his chain. 

"Why yes," the man said, his amber eyes lighting up. "I'm actually a collector," he said, "Are you interested in Egypt as well? I'm actually a friend of Domino's museum curator, I sometimes help him with the artifacts."

It had seemed like such a simple question.

The dancing lights flickered over the pair while the music boomed out of the speakers, making the tiny table jostle and jump.

"Well…actually yes. My boyfriend is from Egypt."

The man lifted his eyebrows. "From Egypt? Is his name perchance, Yami?"

"Yes!" exclaimed Tea, "He went to Egypt a few weeks ago. Do you know him?" She eagerly leaned forward.

"I have heard of a man called Yami who is a wonder with Dueling cards, and that he lived in this city. Since you live here, I just assumed that your friend was this man."

"Oh," said Tea, crestfallen, she had hoped that somehow, he had news of Yami. 

"Well, it seems that I'm going to go back to the dance floor," the man said smoothly, "My name is Idahs by the way. Perhaps I'll see you around town." With a good-bye nod, Idahs mingled back into the crowd.

When he sensed the Tea-girl had stopped watching him, Idahs shouldered his way out of the reveling crowd and out into the cold. His golden eyes burned coldly as he tightly clenched the gold ankh with a fist. 

"Yami," he whispered, his eyes filled with hate, "You stupid fool, you're at Egypt while your girlfriend is perfect prey here in Japan."

**********

It seemed like the weeks flashed by as Tea renewed herself with vigor. With the help of her friends, she seemed to go back in to the normal cycle of her life. Before she knew it, it was back to school.

As Tea got ready for school, a few miles away, Malik Ishtar left the house. Kicking a rock out of his path, Malik angrily stormed away from the house. He had gotten into another argument with his spirit Yami and to get even, this morning he took Marik's Millenium Rod. 

"Stupid baka," he snarled. As he turned a corner, a hand shot out and grabbed his shoulder. 

Malik immediately twisted out of the unknown person's grasp, holding the Item in front of him, ready to use it.

"Calm down, calm down!" the man said in a placating voice, "I just want to ask you something."

"Well you asked the wrong person," Malik spat, turning away. 

"I don't think so," the yellow-eyed man drawled in a lazy voice. "I need your Millennium Item that you have there."

Malik smirked evilly, well this stranger would learn the hard way in trying to mess with him. Raising the staff in front of him with an outstretched arm, Malik smiled, "Into the shadow real for you!"

Idahs watched calmly as light flared from the staff and shot toward him. "Nice try," he said calmly as a barrier of blue light sprung up, absorbing the attack, the ankh on his chest glowing.

"Who are you," Malik said sharply, backing a few steps.

"Hmm..that's the same thing that Shadi said," Idahs said with a cold smile, "It's too bad that he couldn't stop me. This ankh that I'm wearing is his. But don't worry, he's just in the Shadow Realm. Lucky for you, I have use for you." Idah's eyes flared a white color as his body melted and slammed into Malik's.

Malik grunted as cold seeped into his body and a black abyss opened beneath his feet. He's taking over my mind, he thought in horror as he the hole swallowed him up. 

Idahs opened his eyes. He was now a in Malik's body. Being a spirit was useful, he thought musingly, especially when he had the power to take over other people's bodies. And now with the millennium rod in his possession, it was time to play cat and mouse with a girl called Tea Gardener. 

Tea trudged down the road, her breath steaming into little puffs of white air. Lost in thought, Tea didn't notice the figure standing in her path. Slam! 

Oof, Tea said, grimacing as she fell to the asphalt. Her eyes met the eyes of Malik Ishtar.

"Sorry," she said, brushing the dirt off of her knees. "Where's Marik?" She looked side to side. That was odd, the two of them always walked to school together.

Malik's eyes gleamed oddly, and his hand slowly reached out to touch Tea's face, trailing a finger around the curve of her jaw.

"So smooth, Tea Gardener," he whispered softly.

Tea froze under the caress. Then she violently sprang herself backwards.

"What the hell are you doing!" Tea said, more furious than scared.

"Why nothing, Tea my dear," Malik said, eyes brimming with amusement. "I just wanted to say that you have such beautiful skin," laughing, Malik turned away, leaving Tea trembling in anger and confusion.

~~~~~

Oooh…what's gonna happen next? Hehe, review and then u'll find out!


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